Which to use
“feilen” is a verb and “Fetten” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #33,041
- “feilen” frequency rank
- #8,709
- “Fetten” frequency rank
- 41750
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | feilen | Fetten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit einer Feile bearbeiten | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Fett |
Where the eye mixes feilen and Fetten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. feilen (CVVCVC) and Fetten (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between feilen and Fetten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: feilen is [ˈfaɪ̯lən] while Fetten is [ˈfɛtn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41750, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
feilen is recorded at frequency rank #33,041, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfaɪ̯lən]. Fetten is at rank #8,709, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfɛtn̩].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 41750, this pair ranks #1,470,225 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of feilen vs Fetten
Shared letters: efn. Private to "feilen": il. Private to "Fetten": t.
"feilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "Fetten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "feilen" and "Fetten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "feilen" or "Fetten"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "feilen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Fetten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,470,225 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "feilen" and "Fetten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feilen vs Filet". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,470,225 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.